The present invention relates to smoking articles such as cigarettes, and in particular to those smoking articles having a short fuel element and a physically separate aerosol generating means. Smoking articles of this type, as well as materials, methods and/or apparatus useful therein and/or for preparing them, are described in the following U.S. Pat. No. 4,708,151 to Shelar; U.S. Pat. No. 4,714,082 to Banerjee et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,732,168 to Resce; U.S. Pat. No. 4,756,318 to Clearman et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,782,644 to Haarer et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,793,365 to Sensabaugh et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,802,568 to Haarer et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,827,950 to Banerjee et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,870,748 to Hensgen et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,881,556 to Clearman et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,893,637 to Hancock et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,893,639 to White; U.S. Pat. No. 4,903,714 to Barnes et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,917128 to Clearman et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,928,714 to Shannon; U.S. Pat. No. 4,938,238 to Hancock et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,989,619 to Clearman et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,027,837 to Clearman et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,038,802 to White et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,042,509 to Banerjee et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,052,413 to Baker et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,060,666 to Clearman et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,065,776 to Lawson et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,067,499 to Banerjee et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,076,292 to Sensabaugh et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,076,297 to Farrier et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,088,507 to Baker et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,099,861 to Clearman et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,101,839 to Jakob et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,105,831 to Banerjee et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 5,105,837 to Barnes et al., as well as in the monograph entitled Chemical and Biological Studies of New Cigarette Prototypes That Heat Instead of Burn Tobacco, R J Reynolds Tobacco Company 1988 (hereinafter "RJR Monograph"). These smoking articles are capable of providing the smoker with the pleasures of smoking (e.g., smoking taste, feel, satisfaction, and the like). Such smoking articles typically provide low yields of visible sidestream smoke as well as low yields of FTC tar when smoked.
The smoking articles described in the aforesaid patents and/or publications generally employ a combustible fuel element for heat generation and an aerosol generating means, positioned physically separate from, and typically in a heat exchange relationship with the fuel element. Many of these aerosol generating means employ a substrate or carrier for one or more aerosol forming materials, e.g., polyhydric alcohols, such as glycerin. The aerosol forming materials are volatilized by the heat from the burning fuel element and upon cooling form an aerosol. Normally, the fuel elements of such smoking articles are circumscribed by an insulating jacket.
The fuel elements employed in the above-described smoking articles burn to produce combustion products such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, water and trace quantities of other compounds. One known method for reducing the amount of carbon monoxide produced by the burning of a fuel element is to reduce the combustion temperature of that fuel element. Reducing the combustion temperature reduces the calories generated, thereby reducing the heat that must be dissipated during smoking. This assists in preventing overheating of the smoking article.